By Blake Haas

BLOOMINGTON – Local health officials want the public to be vigilant during the holiday season as cases of COVID-19 increase.

While the risk remains low, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID Data tracker reports a 10% jump in hospitalizations over the past week..

“(One thing you can do is) good cough and sneeze etiquette, of course we want to do that. (Another thing) is staying at home when you are sick is really big. It’s a bummer, but it’s a really big thing,” Marianne Manko, McLean County Health Department Public Affairs Coordinator told WJBC’s Neil Doyle. “This sounds like a little thing, but washing your hands a lot and frequently is probably one of the best things you can do.”

At Miller Park Zoo, zoo officials are working to administer COVID-19 vaccines and boosters to animals.

“And that’s one of the critical steps because we closed Katthoefer (Animal building) because there just was not great ventilation in there. Which we are working on, we are getting some new fans, some new HVAC,” Jay Pratte, Director of Miller Park Zoo told WJBC’s Scott Miller. “Our vets really wanted those animals to be vaccinated.”

During the pandemic, Rilu, an 11-year old snow leopard, died from COVID-19 induced pneumonia.

Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].